Death's Love
by Hannah-MaKayla
Summary: "Why do I always fall for children of Poseidon?" Nico whispered into her curly black hair. Here they were, dancing in the moonlight, someplace Nico never imagined he would be: In love. Death wasn't supposed to love, especially not this girl. But she was so much like Percy, only better. And Nico never felt happier. {Rated T for blood.} {Book two coming soon}
1. Chapter 1

Percy Jackson. The name itself invoked fear in the hearts of monsters everywhere. Yeesh, I've been hanging out with Annabeth too much. Saying "Invoked" is not normal for me. Who am I? Well, I _am_ Percy Jackson. Ya know, Percy Jackson, Son of Poseidon, Hero of Olympus, boyfriend of Annabeth Chase? Well, the last one might not ring a bell, but the other two should.

It's been a few months since me and a few friends of mine defeated Gaia, mother of the earth. After a long and hard battle, we came out victorious. Annabeth, Piper, Jason, Leo, Frank, and Hazel were the other six demigods that helped. Let's just say that the battle was epic, and the losses, minimal.

While we kicked Mother Earth's butt, Nico, a shadowy friend of ours, had traveled with a satyr friend of ours and Reyna, praetor of New Rome, to bring the Athena Parthenos back to Camp Half-Blood to stop the war between the Greek and Roman camps from happening for the sixth time. They were successful, landing the statue right between the front lines and nearly squishing Octavian, who we could've done without. Sadly, he did not go splat under Annabeth's mom, and he made it out, leading the rest of Camp Jupiter back to their home in California.

Now, let's talk about what's really interesting. After the huge congrats party on Olympus, the rest of the seven decided to split up. Jason and Piper decided to leave CJ (Camp Jupiter) for CHB (Camp Half-Blood.) Leo had finally convinced the gods to let Calypso out of her sentence. But, with the rest of the gods so busy, Leo had to sail the _Argo II _out to Ogygia to find her. He's been in a storm for a few days, but the son of Hephaestus is making great time and will get out of the hurricane within a few hours. Frank and Hazel decided to remain at Camp Jupiter as did Reyna, who really didn't want to leave CHB in the shambles it was in. Annabeth and I decided to do a little bit of both, staying at each camp for a few months, leaving for a week on assignment to find more of the Greek demigods, and then going to the other camp.

It had been nearly two years after the battle, and we were in one of the in-between weeks of searching when my dad decided to pay a visit. I don't really want to go into the details, seeing as how much more important things need to be said. The whole thing consisted of catching up and cracking jokes before he dropped the bomb on me.

The whole "Percy, you have a sister" thing didn't really settle well with me. I, of course, responded with a relatively calm response of passing out. Before you go laughing, it was a lot better than inadvertently creating a hurricane in the middle of Tennessee. Now, ends up that dear little sister was going to turn sixteen the next day, way past the claiming age of all Greek demigods. That means that I had to find her, convince her that Poseidon was our dad, and get her to camp before the monsters found her.

Annabeth was extremely happy that I had a sister. "Finally! I can finally talk to a girl that you like and have no problem with me ditching you for!" she had said. I soaked her for the ditching part, which in turn made her mad enough to ignore me for the rest of the pegasus ride to Arkansas. Dad told me that she would be here.

We got their the next day. Blackjack and his buddies landed outside a cabin. It was in the shade of a mountain and had a huge, stream-fed lake right outside the front door. It was so hard not to jump into the crystal clear water. I fed my black pegasus a sugar cube before telling him to take off but hang around in case of monsters.

_ You got it, boss. _

Annabeth and I stood around for a while, taking in the beautiful scenery before she screeched and ran to the house. It was a regular cabin, but it did seem to have a touch of Greek architecture, which was Annabeth's kryptonite. The pillars were carved with wave symbols up and down it. Even though it was in the middle of the mountains, it still managed to smell like the ocean. My girlfriend ran her hands down the wood, murmuring about the craftsmanship when my sister barreled out of the lake, clutching a long stick with water trailing behind her.

What a sight. She looked a lot like me, only she was about four inches shorter, landing her at about five-ten or so, wearing a swimsuit with only a t-shirt on over it. She had the signature sea green eyes, lush black hair, and tan skin of a seaweed brain, only she had a dusting of freckles along her nose. Let's just say that I probably would've said she was a daughter of Aphrodite if it hadn't of been for the fact that she had just ran out of the lake bone dry.

When she was about ten feet from us, she stopped and looked at me. I gave her a small grin, opened my arms, and said, "Hiya, sis,"

That made her drop her stick, but the water stayed behind her. She narrowed her eyes at Annabeth, but her hard gaze softened when she looked at me, as if she knew who I was. "You're the one from my dreams, the one who defeated Gaia, aren't you?" she asked, taking a few steps closer.

"Well, when you're the son of Poseidon, you gotta do what you-ow!" If you're wondering where the ow came from, ask Annabeth who slapped me in the back of the head. Sis walked up to me and squinted at my necklace. She picked up the bead with the trident on it, examining it closely before she ran inside, yelling at us to follow. "My name's Maria Lunabell by the way. Call me Maria."

We walked into the smallish cabin, Annabeth gaping at the paintings on the ceiling. They were of me, my quests, starting from the day I fought Ares and ending when I put my sword, Riptide, through Gaia's ugly chest. They were all done in detail, each of the scenes and colors done down to a T. "How did you do these?" Annabeth asked in wonder. Maria just pointed to the ladder and paints sitting in the corner as if that held all the world's answers.

The room itself was about the a quarter of the size of one of our cabins back home. It had a single bed and open windows. The whole place was filled with plants and small fountains. Some shells and starfish decorated the bed I presumed was my sister's.

Maria was rummaging through her overflowing jewelry box, looking for something she must've thought was extremely important. "Aha!" she said a few seconds later. She pulled out a necklace, a bronze one with six pearls and the symbol of Poseidon hanging in the middle. "I've always had it. Uncle Hermes said that Dad gave it to me when I turned one. I've never met him," she explained.

She put it on, sighing when it slapped against her chest. "It seems like something bad happens when I put it on. The last time…the last time I wore it, well, lets just say that I'm banned from Little Rock."

"Why did you stay here, all alone, instead of moving into town?" Annabeth asked.

"Because the monsters can't find me out here. It's something to do with that lake. They can't cross it and they're too stupid to come down the mountain." Maria said, smirking slightly. "The minotaur has a serious grudge against us, you know that?"

I laughed till I was red in the face. Annabeth just smiled and shook her head. Finally, I was able to talk again and explained everything. Maria seemed glad to be getting out of there. She set to work on packing, pushing me out so she could change.

She explained that she had seen most of our adventures through her dreams. It wasn't an odd thing for demigods to have dreams like that, and it did make things a lot easier on Annabeth and I. Soon, Maria was ready to leave for her new home.

Blackjack tumbled out of the sky, followed by his two new lady friends, Carrie and June. Carrie was silvery grey with a silly personality while Kelpie was white and had a serious tone. Annabeth preferred Kelpie, of course.

_ Hey, boss,_ they chorused.

I explained the situation to them, each one of them excited to have someone else to talk to. Speaking of the someone else, Maria walked out of her cabin with a leather backpack. Her hair was done with a braid along the top of her head and a thick fishtail landing on her right shoulder and trailing to her waist. She had on cutoff blue jean shorts and a blue shirt with the saying "Mortals don't even know" in black letters. I laughed at the writing, seeing as how it was hilariously true.

Apparently the leather backpack she carried was enchanted to hold any amount of items without ever loosing space or weighing more. She walked up to Kelpie after greeting the horses. _I like her, boss,_ Blackjack said.

Finally, we all mounted up and kicked off the ground. For some reason, Maria seemed to like flying a lot more than I did. She yelled and cheered with a smile on her face. We were in the realm of our uncle, and Zeus wasn't very partial to children of his brothers.

It took a few hours of flying before we reached the place I called home. CHB was the same as always, though, I don't remember Peleus the dragon being that large. Oh, wait, that's just the Hephaestus kids fixing Festus's body. Leo was still using the bronze head as the prow décor on the _Argo II. _They were making quick work, already done with the huge chest and most of the tail. I saw Tyson, my one eyed brother, down there manning the forge. Finally, we reached the rest of the camp.

It's me, Maria. I didn't want to go without telling you my first reaction to the camp. It was huge compared to the little valley and cabin I usually stayed in. The big house and surrounding cabins were amazing. Most of the cabins were finished, those must've been the older, original ones. Some, like the Nemesis and Iris cabins, were still under construction. We landed in the courtyard, campers crowding around us, making Kelpie and I a little nervous. I patted her when she told me goodbye.

Eventually, Percy explained that I was just a new edition to the camp, leaving out the fact that I was his half-sister. Chiron was a centaur, which didn't creep me out at all. He introduced Jason, son of Jupiter, and Piper, a beautiful daughter of Aphrodite. Both were the cabin leaders. "She's definitely my sister," Piper said after one look.

Clarisse happened to be a daughter of Ares, the only daughter to receive her father's blessing in battle. She seemed to like me a lot more than Percy, calling my brother "Prissy."

Tyson immediately became one of my new best friends when the first thing he did was hug me. It was nice to find someone so accepting of me. "If my brother has a new friend, I do too!" he had yelled after crushing me. I smiled at him. Percy pulled him aside to tell him that I was actually their sister which made Tyson give me another bone-crushing hug, whispering that I was his new favorite sister. That sweet notion and the pain of the hug made a tear spring to my eye.

When he finally let me go, I got an eyeful of my new favorite demigod. And holy Hera was he something. He was what you would call tall, dark, and handsome. His pale skin seemed to glow slightly and his dark hair and eyes were breathtaking. He had a runner's build. Flat stomach, long and lanky muscles on a tall body. His outfit was different than most. Grey shirt, leather jacket, black jeans, chain belt, skull ring? Definitely a bad boy. He radiated power but his stand-off attitude puzzled me. He sat in the shadow of the big house, watching me with a curious, crooked grin that made my heart drop to my feet. A little squeaking sound was heard in the back of my throat.

Percy caught me staring and said, "Ah, that, dear sister, is Nico di Angelo, son of Hades, and one of the most powerful demigods you'll ever meet. He's stronger than Jason when it comes to using his father's gifts." Annabeth waved him over, making my heart beat faster and faster.

You can tell a lot about a person just by how they walked. Percy was confident and strong while Annabeth had more pride and smarts in her step. Nico, he had a mysterious gait. He was cautious about his surroundings, but sure of himself. He had a brisk pace, one that nearly matched my own.

"Nico, this is Maria," Percy said, grinning at Nico's expression. "Maria, meet Nico, the resident antisocial."

You can also tell a lot about a person by their hands. So when Nico stuck out his hand in greeting, I immediately clasped it in mine. He had large, cold, callused hands. This guy had a hard life. Most likely a swordsman. His eyes held curiosity, innocence, and also a hint of pain.

"Maria Lunabell Chure. Pleased to meet you," I said. He responded with something really intelligent like "Uhhhuh. What he says,"

That caused Percy to snicker. Annabeth hit him on the back of the head for the second time that day. The slapping seemed to be a normal part of their relationship. I laughed at my brother's expense. I blushed when I realized I was still holding Nico's hand. He dropped it and turned away, looking behind him. That didn't hide the fact that his ears were bright red also.

It was nearing sunset when they took me around for the tour. Nico stuck around, following us and cracking the occasional joke. Apparently, Nico had been a major part of the last adventure. I didn't ever see him in any of my dreams though. Odd. Each of the cabins were unique. The one that I was most fond of was the one I would call home.

Cabin 3 was open, letting the sea breeze blow through the cotton curtains. There were shells, starfish, and little, mechanical seahorses hanging around the room. The bunk beds were covered in sea-green sheets and matching comforters. I inhaled, taking in the place. It smelled like the sea. It smelled like home.

"Well, we know who her father is," Nico murmured. Percy laughed a little before explaining that since today was my sixteenth birthday, it was way past time for me to be claimed. Apparently, Percy wanted it to be a surprise for the camp. My tour was cut short when Piper ran in, screaming about how the Hephaestus kids had set half of the forest on fire. Percy and I sprang into action, following both Piper and the smoke to the fire.

The blaze was huge, springing across the creek in the woods with not problem. Tyson was running around carrying buckets to put out the dryads while their cousins the naiads were shooting water at the burning trees. Most of the camp was also there, carrying buckets of water.

Percy looked at me and nodded. It was my cue. Together, he and I summoned the water of the sea, seeing as how the creek was already in use. I felt a tugging feeling in my chest. It was normal for me to feel it when I used my powers. I closed my eyes and pictured a large title wave slowly pushing past the beach and canoe lake and into the forest.

"Everybody hold onto something!" Annabeth yelled. I didn't bother to open my eyes when the wave came crashing through the forest. I felt Percy put a hand around my waist and Nico's cold hand grab my arm. The physical contact with Mr. Gorgeous was not good with my concentration. Between Percy and I, we managed to stop the fire and soak the whole camp population in the blink of an eye.

He nudged me when it was over, saying, "Good job, sis,"

Soon, the rest of the campers were gathered around Percy and I, everyone still thinking that it was all Percy who put out the fire. I didn't correct them, not really wanting all that attention. Everyone was still soaked, even Nico, who looked mighty fine with his shirt plastered to him.

"Hey, why isn't the new girl wet?" Clarisse asked, finally pointing out the obvious. I mean, seriously, didn't the necklace and talking to the pegasus give it away? Yeesh, these people haven't spent enough time with Annabeth. Then Dad decided to make it official by claiming me. A rotating, circular hologram glowed above me. It was sea green, the same color as my eyes, and had the same bronze trident as my necklace.

"All hail Maria, daughter of Poseidon, the Earthshaker and god of the seas." Chiron said, kneeling at my feet. Everyone followed the suit, even Clarisse, who didn't seem happy about it.

I felt someone pick me up, and, judging by the height, it was Tyson and Percy. They sat me on their shoulders and walked back to the big house. Tyson was chanting, "I have a new sister, and she is better than yours!" Percy laughed and joined in on the chant, both of the boys causing quite a ruckus.

I had my eyes closed while we walked through the forest. Turns out, that wasn't a good idea. Soon, the boys walked under a low-lying branch which knocked me off their shoulders and into someone's arms.

In the evening light, Nico's skin glowed. I knew why he always stayed in the shadow, but the light suited him well. I had landed in his arms bridal-style, and he sure looked happy about it. He had a crooked, slightly nervous grin plastered to his face with a slight blush creeping into his cheeks. Mine, on the other hand, were on fire. It was really, really nice to be this close to him, but in front of the whole camp, not so much.

And, when he realized that everyone was staring, Nico stammered, "Happy birthday," and shadow traveled somewhere over the rainbow, leaving me to fall flat on my butt. Connor and Travis Stoll were making kissy faces at me and made the heart symbol with their hands. Clarisse was snickering and Piper had on a perfect "awwwww!" face. Percy helped me up and almost drug me back to the cabin. Tyson was still walking towards the big house, not noticing the sudden absence of weight on his shoulder.

When we walked into Cabin 3, Percy looked mad enough to bite through steel. I sat on the bed I had claimed and watched my brother. His face was all red and his eyes were dark with anger. I almost laughed, seeing as how the green eyes and red face were a funny contrast.

"You will not-just-don't-you're too young-I mean-grr!" Percy stammered in frustration. I snorted a little under my breath and bit my lip, an old habit of mine that I thought I had kicked way back when. He was stomping around the cabin and waving his hands furiously in the air.

"I might have only known you but for a couple of hours, but you're still my little sister! And you won't-Not now, Piper!" In the middle of his tirade, Piper had peeked her head in and was about to say something. Percy didn't even turn around to look when he told her to go away. Piper looked away from Percy and gave me a silent thumbs-up before having the door slammed in her face.

"And you will NOT get into a relationship with Nico di Angelo on your first day of camp! Matter of fact, you won't get into a relationship with him at all! Zip, nada, no mas, lack of churos!" Percy began to spout nonsense, making me bite my lip even harder.

He was still stomping around the cabin when Annabeth called us for dinner. I grabbed my backpack and ran out of the door, stopping beside Annabeth. "That bad?" she asked. The sound of Percy kicking a bed and then yelping in pain answered for me.

"Percy's fatal flaw, well actually all of Poseidon's children, is loyalty and protectiveness. Nico is one of those people you can count on when you need them, but he tends to disappear for long periods of time. You guys-" I cut off her rambling with a hand.

"I get where you two are coming from, and Nico is gorgeous, but I just got here, and I don't know the first thing about boys. I was stuck in that cabin with only the occasional monster to keep me company. Well, Hermes brought me this backpack, but still." I said, hopefully making a point. Annabeth nodded, saying that that was wise.

"Hermes brought you that backpack?" she asked a little while later. I nodded and bid her goodbye as we reached the tables.

Tyson was already at our table and patted the bench beside him. I sat down and watched as a steak salad with ranch dressing was brought to me, along with a Monster drink. I know, I know, Monsters aren't good for you, but hey, yolouyaeacr (You only live once unless you achieve Elysium and choose rebirth.) Yeah, it isn't as catchy as the original.

Percy joined us a little while later, still a little peeved. We had finished and were about to go to the bonfire when Tyson asked me about my home. As the plates were whisked away, I felt someone appear behind me. I sighed and said, "Connor, I don't care what kind of love potion you've brewed, I'm not-"

A cold hand wrapped around my mouth. Percy looked up with a furious expression, about to start screaming when my vision went black.

For the record, shadow traveling was awesome, just a little dizzying. When I could finally see again, I was on Half-Blood Hill. I turned around to find myself inches from the devil himself.

"Thanks for dropping me," I said with a smirk, staring straight into the dark brown eyes of Nico. We were inches away from each other, inches away from kissing.

"Sorry about that," he said, turning away sheepishly. He was running his fingers through his hair. Geeze, I wanted to do that for him. Wait, did I really just think that? I sure do hope that Percy didn't have a friend who could read minds.

I bit my lip when the silence ensued. It really wasn't awkward, but it wasn't normal either. Nico had turned back around and cocked his head sideways. He looked like a puppy dog when he did that.

"Why do you do that?" he asked.

"What?"

"Bite your lip,"

"Oh," I really didn't know why. "Um, well, I don't know. I used to read a lot and I guess the suspense of the books just made me pick it up." I shrugged nonchalantly.

He smiled for real this time, not a nervous grin but a full, gentle, sparkling smile. If the last grins made my heart drop to my feet, then this one sent my heart straight to Tartarus.

"So, you're a book nerd?" he asked, still smiling.

"Yep. Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, Divergent, you name it, I've read it." I say, throwing my hands in the air for emphasis. He leans in really close, making my eyes widen and my breath hitch. His breath tickles my ear when he says, "I think that's adorable,"

I was still having trouble breathing when he shadow traveled me back to my cabin, kissing my hand as a goodnight before he walked deep into the forest, in the opposite direction of the campfire.

Still having trouble breathing, I walked right to the bathroom, showered, and got dressed for bed. By the time I finally got my heart rate back to normal, I was lying in bed, about to go to sleep when Percy barged in with Tyson in tow. I tried to hide under the covers, but Percy yanked them off of me.

"MARIA LUNABELL CHURE YOU ARE SO GROUNDED!" Percy yelled. I stifled a giggle at Tyson's confused expression. Percy began to stomp around, muttering gibberish and throwing his hands into the air. Tyson began to tinker with a few gears and metal pieces, making me wonder what he was making. I was about to ask when Percy kicked the fountain in the middle of the room. He began to hop around on one foot, and I couldn't smother my laughs this time. Tyson and I were practically rolling on the floor by the time Percy calmed down enough to construct a sentence.

Eventually, Tyson had laid down to go to sleep, wrapping the gears and such in an oilcloth. Percy sighed and sat down beside me, smelling like the sea. I'm sure I did too, but still. He didn't say anything, just sat there like a bump on a log. I was scrolling through my playlist on the iPod when a light erupted in the center of the room.

When the light finally subsided, our father stood in the remains of the fountain. He had a black beard and the same black hair and sea green eyes as we did, but he had on a despicable Hawaiian tourist shirt and khaki Bermuda shorts. "Percy!" Poseidon yelled, opening his arms for a hug. Perc relented and gave Dad a hug.

"How have you been? How's Annabeth? Have you killed any monst-" Poseidon was cut short when he spotted me. He smiled and dropped his arm which had been around Percy's shoulders. I immediately got up and walked over to him. "Maria, gods, you're beautiful," my father sighed. I hadn't ever met the god of the sea, since the little lake and mountain cabin wasn't really his style.

I hugged him tightly, the sounds and smell of the ocean overwhelming my senses. I felt a tear come to my eye. I knew that this was my father and Percy and Tyson were my brothers. And this was where I belonged.

Dad pulled back and examined me, turning my face from side to side and poking my ribs. "You can tell that your grandmother was a daughter of Aphrodite. And her dad was a son of Apollo," he said, catching me by surprise. "Thank you,"

Percy sighed and said, "Yep, Nico's noticed her looks too, you know,"

I expected Poseidon to go crazy and make a hurricane or something, but he just grinned and nudged my shoulder. "She's a chip off the old block,"

"Daaaaadddddd!" Percy whined, "You're supposed to be on my side! She's too young! And you hate your brother!"

I grinned and said, "I'm sixteen and I think that Dad likes Hades way more than he likes Athena,"

Poseidon burst out laughing, causing the ground to shake under us. "She's got spunk! Thata girl!" he said, still chuckling slightly.

Percy threw his hands in the air again and said, "I give up!" Tyson finally woke up after Percy's outburst. Soon, we were all talking about our lives and how things were going. It was around 10 when Dad finally had to leave.

"Happy birthday, Maria," he said, tossing me a sapphire and bronze ring. "Percy has Riptide, so you need something for yourself. Twist the gem and it turns into Tsunami, your new sword. Its enchanted so that it will show up on your left middle finger if you lose it."

I did as he said and out popped a bronze sword. Then Percy, being a competitive boy, had to uncap Riptide and compare them. Tsunami was also Celestial Bronze, but it was lighter and slightly thinner than Riptide. The hilt was wrapped in white leather and had the same sapphire gem on the hilt. "Thank you," I said before turning the hilt-stone and changing it back into a ring. I put it back on my finger, admiring how it sparkled in the moonlight.

"I'll be checking in every now and then, you three," he said, throwing me a wink before slamming his trident on the ground and disappearing in a ball of light. Tyson went to work on repairing the fountain and Percy laid down to sleep.

I didn't do either. I walked out on the back porch, the one facing the ocean. I went to the ocean once. It was when I was about ten. Artemis and her Hunters showed up and tried to recruit me, taking me on one of their journeys to Florida. I had loved the way the sand felt under my feet and how the waves lapped at my legs. They took me back after I made it clear that I was ok with being alone.

Mother had died when I was born, according to Hermes. Other than the occasional monster and boxes of food from the Hermes Express, I didn't have much interaction with the outside world. I did hike to Little Rock one time. It was ruined by the minotaur chasing me through downtown and wrecking the city. The police thought it was my pet cow I had brought to the market and banned me from the city limits. I told them that I lived in a cabin with my Uncle Hermes. I was twelve ok? I was doing good to keep from bawling.

Anyway, the back porch was open and had hammocks swaying in the wind. I collapsed into the closest one and closed my eyes, only to dream about Nico di Angelo and those amazing eyes.

In the morning, I woke up to Tyson presenting a little trinket to me. It was a beautiful watch. Made of bronze and small shards of crystal, the timepiece was waterproof according to Tyson. I thanked him before putting it on. A perfect fit.

I walked inside to see that Percy was still asleep. I couldn't pour water on him since we were both waterproof. I could put makeup on him though. Thank gods he is a hard sleeper. I managed to put on eye shadow and mascara while Tyson painted his fingers and toes turquoise.

Soon, we were done. I had also gotten ready in the meantime, slipping into another pair of blue jean shorts and a navy tank. Percy finally got up and stumbled into the bathroom. I was putting my necklace and ring on when he sauntered in. "You know, that nail polish really brings out your eyes," I said as I admired my own silver nails. And then Perc looked in the mirror. Well, all I can say is that the cleaning harpies will have one heck of a time this fall.

Percy managed to get the eye shadow off, but the mascara and nail polish were waterproof. Since he had dark eyelashes anyway, you really couldn't tell that the mascara was on there. The nails were a problem. I wasn't going to let him have my remover, and Tyson refused to give Percy hydrochloric acid. Oh well, he couldn't get the nail polish off, I couldn't date Nico.

I manage to change his mind about that last part. "I do have some remover, but it'll cost you," I said in a singsong voice.

"How much?"

"Oh, just a little promise,"

"Just get to the point, Maria,"

I had him now. "You have to let me and Nico hang out and/or date without you or anyone else getting in the way."

Percy's eyes turned dark again and I heard the waves outside become a little more violent. "Not…..happening," he said. I shrugged and told him that seeing as how only the Aphrodite girls and I have remover, it seemed like he would just have to deal with it. "And that polish is guaranteed for sixty days," I said, turning around to walk out of the bathroom.

"Wait," he said, defeated as always. "You can hang out and/or date Nico."

"Swear it on the River Styx!"

Percy complied and thunder rumbled outside. I handed over the remover, smiling as if I just won the world in a poker game. Soon, I walked outside to be met by Piper. She gushed about how her and her siblings were up all night making bets on how long it took for Nico to kiss me.

"I have my own horse in the race, you know. I'm betting that he'll kiss you before the summer's over," she said smugly. I laughed and asked what she bet. "A weeks worth of our Mom's special chocolate. You can eat as much as you want and not gain a pound!"

We finally got to the pavilion and parted ways. I sat down after scraping some of my bacon and eggs into the fire only to be met by the Stoll brothers. They sat on either side of me.

"You know," Travis started.

"If you really wanted to," Connor said.

"We could slip a little potion,"

"Into Nico's coke,"

"And then-"

They were cut off by Nico himself, "And then I'd set my skeleton army on the both of you,"

Connor and Travis shuttered and left, but not before they both landed a kiss on either of my cheeks. Nico growled behind me. I didn't turn around, because turning is too mainstream. I just tilted my head backwards until I saw the world, and Nico, upside down. "Hiya, Nico!" I said happily. He smiled and shook his head before walking to his table. He had a pen and a piece of paper in his hand. I saw him scribbling furiously before sending it to my table with shadow travel. It went like this (bold=Nico; italics=me) 

**Hi. **

_Hi. Didn't we already go through this?_

**Yes, but I figure hi is the best way to start a conversation. What did you do to Percy? He looks ticked.**

I didn't notice that Percy had walked up and was talking to Annabeth at her table.

_Well, me and Tyson kinda put make up on him and painted his fingernails while he was asleep. He still has the mascara on,_

I dropped it on the ground and watched as Nico transported it back over to him. When he read it, he laughed, drawing stares from most of the other campers. When he noticed them staring, he growled a little. Everyone went pale and then turned back to their food.

**Oh my gods, that's absolutely amazing. Do you feel like skipping camp today?**

_How about tomorrow? I really want to show some people up today with my totally awesome demigod skills_. _plus, my dad gave me a new sword for my birthday. __J_

Nico smiled a little when he read that and told me that we'd go to the arena as soon as I got some free time.

I had the obstacle course featuring a snake pit and lava wall for the first activity. I wasn't that great at walking the tightrope, but I could scale that wall as easy as Clarisse could. The next activity was archery, and boy, did I love that.

When I first walked to the range, all the Apollo kids were messing around with their own weapons. I followed a golden-haired girl named Amy to the bow racks. She handed me a white one with black grips and green feathered arrows. Holding the bow felt natural as did pulling the string back. I was really surprised when I hit bullseye on my first try. All of the chatter stopped as the whole Apollo cabin looked at me. I explained that my great-grandfather was a son of Apollo. Everyone watched as I emptied the quiver and split each arrow before it.

Amy whistled and said, "Well, I'm taking this off of your schedule. You're too good as it is." She then shooed me away, telling me to keep the bow and that she'd bring me some new arrows.

I finally had free time and I didn't plan on wasting it. I sprinted to my cabin, put up the bow, and ran to the arena. Nico was in there sparing with Percy. And they were shirtless. I sat there watching, okay, gawking, silently as Nico began to get the upper hand. Just as he moved in to disarm my brother, Nico noticed me and lost concentration. Percy slipped under his arm and kicked his legs out from under him.

Annabeth came over to me, winking when no one was looking. I blushed as Percy came over and hugged the two of us. "How are my two favorite girls doing?" he asked. I rolled my eyes as he spun Annabeth around before kissing her. I saw Nico wince out of the corner of my eye and I looked over to him. The hurt was evident on his face. I didn't know why, but I walked over and kissed him on the cheek, right there, in front of my overprotective brother and his girlfriend. And Piper, who was trying, and failing, to hide behind the weapons rack.

Percy began to stomp over but I shook one finger and pulled out Tsunami. "Remember your oath," I said with an evil grin on my face. Annabeth ran over to ooh and ahh at my new weapon. Nico still had his Stygian iron sword in his right hand. I noticed that he and Percy were on one side of the ring, and Annabeth and I were on the other side. She had also noticed this and pulled her dagger out.

The boys were in for the beating of their lives. Of course they couldn't beat us, I mean, we were girls, but they couldn't beat us….also because we were Greek demigod girls. Let's just say that it ended up with Percy toting Annabeth towards the canoe lake and Nico and I laying side by side on the arena floor. We were both panting when Nico asked, "Would you like to go see New Rome with me?"

I nodded, only for Nico to whistle and have me tackled by the hellhound I had seen so many times before in my dreams. He helped me onto Mrs. O'Leary and whispered where we wanted to go. Before our friend ran into the shadows, I saw Piper talking to someone on her cell phone and screaming, "It's code blue-and-black! I need you and the rest of the Roman dovelies to watch these two! I have divine chocolate riding on it!"

New Rome was a sight to see. Annabeth had done a great job remodeling. As soon as we got off, Mrs. O'Leary ran to play with an elephant who had a Kevlar bodysuit on with the name Hannibal written on the side. A girl I recognized as Hazel ran up and hugged Nico. Frank walked up a few minutes later along with Reyna. We gave them the run-down about who I was and how we were hiding from Percy. Reyna seemed happy to have someone to stay here for a while. I assured her that it would only be for a few days.

Octavian was found in his temple, surrounded by teddy bears and such. I did notice that he had a new mini-statue, this one of a certain Greek oracle. He had it hidden under the mountain of stuffing, but I saw it before he could do anything about it. Sadly, no one else did.

They gave me the whole tour, showing me all of the barracks and my favorite part of New Rome: the bakeries. The smell of peanut butter cookies made me want to faint. Thankfully, this was our last stop. Reyna and Octavian left us with Frank and Hazel. We sat down outside of the bakery, the smell of a thousand different pastries still wafting out into the street. Nico saw this and went inside, bought me a huge peanut butter cookie, and brought it back out with a big, goofy smile on his face. Hazel looked at Frank and grinned at the look on his face. Frank did have a hilarious surprised face.

The rest of the evening was spent talking and eating various cookies. I felt the presence of other demigods. I figured, by listening to the giggles every time Nico and I looked at each other, they happened to be Piper's Roman sisters. They might be Roman, but they're still children of the love goddess.

Eventually, Nico showed me to the place I would be staying: the temple of Neptune. It did happen to have a four-poster, veiled bed. The place also smelled like the sea. I guess it was a Poseidon/Neptune thing.

I laid down, wondering about how bad Percy was freaking out. I hadn't seen Nico since we parted at the bakery. I felt safe around him. I felt safe around Percy too, but Nico was a different kind of safe. He was like security, while Percy was more protective. It didn't make any sense then, or now.

Just before I fell asleep, I saw a dark someone leaning over my bed. My last thoughts of the day were of that someone, the same someone who I had come to need.

I didn't get to vacation in New Rome as long as I hoped. After three days, Percy Iris-messaged me, asking if I was ok and how everyone over there was doing. After thirty minutes, Annabeth walked in and judo-flipped him, asking why he didn't meet her in the arena an hour ago. I canceled the message and went to packing, missing my brothers and crazy friends.

Nico and I had spent each day either training or putting some of the soldiers to shame with my swordsmanship and archery. He had also given me a few little gifts like a rose….from Turkey. It was black as night and was gorgeous, but not as gorgeous as me, according to Nico. Speaking of Mr. Suddenly Romantic, Nico walked in right as I put on my necklace.

"I knew you'd want to leave this morning." he said, watching me as I braded my hair across the top of my head and throwing it in a ponytail.

"And how did you figure that out?" I asked turning around to face him. He was sitting at the base of the saltwater fountain, twisting the skull ring on his finger. Nico shrugged. I jumped when Mrs. O'Leary came bounding in with Frank and Hazel behind. I had came to like the two of them in the time I stayed here. I had gotten better at my swordsmanship and managed to teach Frank a thing or two in archery.

We said short goodbyes and shadow traveled back to Camp Half-Blood. We found Percy and Annabeth down on the beach, my brother surfing without a surfboard and his girl laying in the sun, reading a book.

I ran inside to change into my swimsuit, yelling at Nico to do the same. With a sigh, he walked back to his cabin, a playful grin on his face. I changed into a white bathing suit that had navy blue anchors and wheels on it. It just so happened to be my favorite.

Grabbing a towel, I ran outside. When we got to the water, Percy was trying to convince Annabeth to get in the ocean. "Seaweed brain, you know that I'm not a water person," she said, hitting him with a death glare. I snuck up behind her before I took a running start and tackled her, sending her straight into the open arms of Percy. Annabeth wasn't lying when she said that she didn't like water. She was practically sitting on Percy's head, which the idiot seemed fine with.

I was about to jump in and join them when I felt Nico's cold hands life me onto his shoulders. I did the obvious thing and yelped like a scalded dog. Nico just laughed and waded out to meet the other two. Percy didn't look happy about the arrangement, but he was excited when we began to play chicken. Annabeth was stronger than she looked, but years of mountain climbing made me much stronger. I pushed her off of Percy's shoulders which made Nico dump me off. I know that it seemed strange, but this was only the second time I had been in the ocean. And, boy, did it feel good. I made an air bubble around me and swam out into the ocean. At least I tried to swim out into the ocean. Nico grabbed my ankle and pulled me back to the beach.

He drug me to the shore where Percy and Annabeth were already gathering up people for a volleyball game. I grinned but declined; I really wanted to sit here in the shade with Nico. Sadly, my…friend? Boyfriend? Person I occasionally hold hands with? Meh, friend seems best right now. Anyway, Nico actually decided to play. Percy, Nico, and Piper were on one team. Jason, Annabeth, and Clarisse were on another. For some reason, Clarisse seemed to like me. I didn't know why, but I kinda found her funny. Violent, sure, but funny.

After thirty minutes, the score was tied. Annabeth set it for Clarisse who jumped up and prepared to spike it. But Annabeth hit it more over and not up, meaning that it was a perfect set…for Nico. He jumped up and spiked it right into Jason's chest. I couldn't help but laugh when Golden Boy hit the dirt. Nico looked at me and grinned. I clapped for him, still smiling. Annabeth called for a truce. Percy apparently didn't think a truce was necessary. So, brother toted his girlfriend deep into the ocean, before dunking her and then submerging them for underwater kiss part two.

Nico instead went to sit beside me in the shade. I was lying back on the towel, looking up at the sunlight filtering through the leaves. No wonder Grover wanted to save the wild. Of course, I couldn't focus very well. Nico was sitting beside me, playing with my hair. He was undoing my braid and attempting to braid it back.

"You know, Nico, I really don't know all that much about you. Tell me about yourself." I said, sitting up. Nico shrugged, going back into silent mode. He wasn't getting away with that. He laid back down, taking my place. I really wanted to know more about him. I never saw him in my dreams, so I didn't know a thing about him other than he was strong and silent and really good with a sword.

I instead decided to go with bribery, seeing as how I'm not very good with threats. I laid down beside him, putting my head on his (Noted: very muscular) chest. I felt him stiffen up. I laughed quietly and put my hand on his stomach. I then proceeded to poke his rubs. I heard him groan a couple of times before grabbing my hands.

"Ok, ok. What do you want to know?" he asked, exasperated. I leaned over and whispered right into his ear, "Everything,"

And so, Nico launched into his life, from his mom dying to being stuck in the Lotus Hotel to Percy saving him from the manticore. I did get a speech from Jason that that Nico used to like another camper. And by the way his voice hitched when he was talking about Percy, I could tell who it was. He was trying to move around the whole Cupid confrontation. I looked up at him, my chin on his chest.

"Nico, I get it," I said.

"You're not upset?" he asked with wide eyes.

I laughed a little and said, "No, you were young and impressionable. I'd have a crush on Percy too…well, if he wasn't my brother. And," I said biting my lip, sitting up, and folding my hands in my lap. "I'd say we're even,"

Nico raised one eyebrow and asked me to elaborate.

"Well," I said in a squeaky voice, "let's just say that I used to have a HUGE crush on Luke…funny, right?"

Obviously it was hilarious. No, seriously, Nico laughed. Hard. "I'm sure that Percy likes me way more than he liked Luke," he said, still shaking from laughing so hard. I pushed him over.

"So, what are we?" I asked him, taking my guy friend by surprise.

"We're demigods. Children of the Big Three-"

"No, Nico. I mean us. Are we friends or…?" I trailed off, not knowing what to say.

"We, Maria, are friends, but friends that occasionally hug and snuggle. So, I'd say we are…complicated." he said, earning a few giggles from some nearby bushes. We rolled our eyes, both knowing who it was. We sat there in the shade, holding hands and watching the sun set until Percy pulled us apart for dinner.

I ran in and changed into the outfit I had on earlier, shorts and a navy top. When I finally made it to dinner, everyone was already eating. I was craving a good plate of spaghetti. I received it and scraped in a portion of it for Dad. "For Poseidon, thank you for giving me a peaceful day."

When I walked back, Percy offered me a slice of his blue cheesecake. Apparently, Tyson had gone back to Dad's palace to forge in the mines. I missed the big lug and his snoring. But at least I still had Percy…and Nico. I grinned at the thought of my "complication" and his weird ways.

"What are you smiling about?" Percy asked in a mischievous voice.

"Nothing," I said in an equally impish voice. Connor and Travis would be proud. Before Percy could con it out of me, Chiron raised his voice to call our attention.

"Campers, we all know that this Saturday is the two year anniversary of the day The Seven defeated Gaia. Last year, we had a feast, but this year, we will have a cotillion."

The whole camp, except the Athena cabin and I, all asked the same question, "What is that?"

Mr. D stood up, "I believe you insects call it a formal dance."

That got the camp talking. They informed us that every day, he would accompany a few campers to go into NYC to find acceptable attire. After dinner, Connor and Travis cornered me. "Will you go with me to the dance?" they asked. Then they began to bicker over which one got to take me. I felt someone grab my hand and pull me aside from the two brothers now shoving each other. It was a boy from the Apollo cabin who read me a poem about my hair and then begged me to go with him. I didn't have to tell them no; a skeleton man and the whole Aphrodite cabin did it for me. Gods, I loved my complication.

Piper and the skeleton man both had a hold of one of my hands, tugging me in opposite directions. "You can't have her yet! I have to fix her makeup!" Piper screamed, "LET HER GO!" I forgot about her charmspeak, and obviously she did too. Our bone friend let me go, the momentum throwing me into Piper and onto the ground.

She drug me to the Aphrodite cabin where she and her siblings proceeded to pluck my eyebrows, curl my hair, and reapply my makeup. They also waxed all the hair off of my legs and arms. I felt like Katniss at the remake center. They let me wear the outfit I had on, saying that it totally complemented my skin tone. Then, they shoved me out the door, Piper yelling for them to get on the roof and commence Plan 36c.

I shook my head before seeing the candles. They were in two rows, framing out a path that I was obviously meant to follow. They led me to the beach, with the waves crashing in the moonlight and the sound comforting.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Sitting right there at the shore was Nico. He had a towel sitting at the water's edge. He sat on it, looking over the ocean. I tried to sneak up on him, but, he wasn't fooled.

"Just get over here and sit down, you goof." he said, smiling at me.

I did. The breeze was blowing in a fresh salty smell. I closed my eyes and listened to the waves. Nico but one hand on my cheek, causing me to open my eyes. He was right there, his face inches from mine. We were practically breathing the same air. "Will you go to the dance with me?" he asked quietly. I smiled and nodded in response, the butterflies not letting me speak. He smiled quickly before leaning in. I closed my eyes right before he did.

Nico kissed me softly, one hand on my cheek and the other on the back of my neck. I wasn't one for soft caresses, so I tangled my hand in his hair like I wanted to from day one and pulled him into me. I felt him smile a little and then pull me back. Let's just say that Percy would be very upset if he would've seen his little sister that night.

When we broke away, I bit my lip and giggled. He laughed in response. We just sat there, his arm around me until the waves and his heartbeat lulled me to sleep.

I woke up to see Jason, Piper, Annabeth, and Percy peering over my hammock, waiting for me to get up. I did the normal thing and fell out of it in surprise.

It was barely dawn! What were they doing here?

According to Piper, her cabin had put together a little filmstrip of Nico and I last night. They were waiting for me to get ready, Jason surprisingly rushing me more than any one else. "Why are you so suddenly interested in my love life?" I ask while brushing my hair out. He mumbled about us being his new OTP.

"You know, the invasion on my privacy doesn't bother me nearly as much as _that_ does," I said, making Jason blush and Percy snicker. We walked without any interruptions to the Aphrodite. In the main room, the boys were setting up a TV and plugging in the camera while the girls were straightening the chairs they set up.

Piper clapped her hands and said that it was time to start the movie. We sat down, me as far from Percy as possible. I figured that they had filmed last night, but I didn't think that they went this far. Piper had apparently sensed something with her AphroPiper senses and began to film Nico and I from day one, the day we met. Every time Nico and I were together, someone was there, filming us. Even in New Rome. I though back to when we shadow traveled there when Piper was holding her cell phone, screaming, "It's code blue-and-black! I need you and the rest of the Roman dovelies to watch these two! I have divine chocolate riding on it!" It must've been the children of Venus. I would never be safe.

Percy had to walk out when the skeleton and Piper were playing tug-of-war with me. Jason and Annabeth went "AWW!" when the cameraman showed me walking on the path of candles. A louder "AWWWW!" was heard when Nico and I kissed, making me blush like crazy and hide me face.

I looked up just in time to see that Nico carried me back to the cabin and laid me in a hammock, seeing as how it was against the rules to go into a cabin alone with a person of the opposite gender. He kissed me on the cheek, making me smile in my sleep before walking away. On the way back to his cabin, he pumped a fist in the air, whispering, "Nailed it!" I smiled and whispered to myself, "He is such an idiot."

After the movie, I literally had to peal everyone off of me so I could walk to breakfast. Percy met me outside and walked with me.

"Maria, I want you to hear me out."

I nod for him to continue.

"Nico is a great guy. He's powerful and nice and witty, but he's unpredictable. Nico disappears and leaves without a word. He's hurt people and made them worry for no reason. Nico's…..well, the Ghost King, and he got that name from being like a ghost, there when you need but don't want him, and gone when you want and don't need him. I don't want to see you get hurt, Maria," Percy said, stopping before we got to the pavilion.

I listened silently, but I spoke when Percy stopped. "Percy, I'm glad that you're so protective and annoying, but I am a big girl. I can deal with a broken heart if I need to. But I don't think Nico would do that to me. Not the Nico I know," I say shaking my head.

Percy smiled at me before getting his food and sitting down. I gave my offering, also throwing in a piece of bacon and thanking Aphrodite for her nutty children. I began to think about what I meant to Nico. Was I just a passing thing, a shinny new toy who will be thrown away as soon as I get too attached? Was our relationship a fling?

I didn't have time to brood on the issue. I heard a weird sound. It was like a sonic boom mixed with a splashdown slash explosion. And for some reason, "Girl on Fire" by Alicia Keys was playing.

Percy and I made eye contact from across the table before taking off in the direction of the beach, Jason, Piper, Annabeth, and half of the camp following us. I felt something beside me and noticed that Nico, who I had never seen run before, was beside me, matching my pace. We got to the bay, Chiron shooing the rest of the camp away.

In the water was the _Argo II, _which had just made its splashdown. Leo Valdez was sitting at the helm, singing along to the song and randomly bursting in flames. Another girl was behind him. I recognized her as Calypso, the one Odysseys, Percy, and Leo had all met and left. Leo had found her and brought her off of Ogygia.

The pair were standing beside the head of Festus who was blowing out fireworks. When they landed on the beach, Leo jumped off first. He burst into fire and pointed to Calypso before yelling, "THIS GIRL IS ON FIRE!" Percy and I made eye contact again before extinguishing Leo. The water didn't hit the goddess, but Leo was completely soaked.

"Hey! I was in mid serenade!" he complained before looking up at his goddess, opening his arms as if to say, "I'll catch you!" I could tell that she didn't buy it. I made a geyser of water push into the air and come level with her feet.

"Go on," I said, "I'll actually catch you,"

The goddess stepped on my water, me dropping the geyser until it was nonexistent. Leo's mouth was wide open. "Girl Percy? You're not just a dream?" he said in a dreamy, out-of mind voice, walking up to me until he got uncomfortably close. Nico growled and stepped between us, pushing Leo back a little.  
"She's _my_ dream," he said in a deadly quiet voice. Leo held up his hands before walking back to Calypso saying, "All yours man! I just had a dream about her and the Minotaur and one _seriously_ wrecked town!"

I blush at the Little Rock reference. Leo urges us back to the big house where he can explain his "amazing adventure and romantic reunion." We did as he said. Chiron let us sit alone while he went back to breakfast.

The eight of us sat and traded stories. We told them about the dance, Calypso saying that she would make our dresses on her loom. Piper showed Leo and Calypso the videos of Nico and me. Leo sat back and whistled, saying, "You know, I didn't think that this guy could be so feelin-romantic! I didn't know he could be so romantic."

I nodded a thank you to Calypso who had pinched him under the table. She smiled back at me before saying, "You really should be in the Aphrodite cabin," I blushed and shook my head, saying that I couldn't leave my idiot brother. Percy rolled his eyes and lightly punched me on the arm. I shoved him back, throwing him out of his chair. Everyone laughed at Percy's expense, even Nico. Leo continued to throw glances my way, but I pretended not to notice it. I didn't know what he was thinking. I planned on finding out.

Eventually, we parted ways, Leo taking everyone minus Nico and I to the _Agro II _to see the damages and remove Festus's head. I had my backpack with me, so I dug through, trying to find my iPod. Somehow, Nico knew what I was looking for and pulled out his own black iPod. He offered me an ear-bud as we walked to the forest. A couple songs played that I didn't know, but then a song came on. My jaw dropped as the first few lines played. _When the days are cold, and the cards all fold, and the saints we see are all made of gold._

"You listen to Imagine Dragons?" I ask, incredulous at the fact that we liked the same music. Nico grinned and nodded before saying, "Yeah, they're sons of Apollo. Well, Dan _is _Apollo." I laughed and then we started to sing along, Nico taking the bass with me harmonizing.

After the song was over, Nico laughed and wrapped his arms around my waist. "That's our song," he whispered into my ear. My arms went around his neck. We were about to kiss when Leo walked up. "BRAVO!" he yelled, making the two of us jump apart and the iPod to fall to the ground. Percy had told him to find us for Festus's final touches.

Nico and I shadow traveled while Leo was left to walk over to Half-Blood hill. There was Festus's head, sitting beside his brand-new shiny body. Leo finally arrived, out of breath and sweaty. Calypso and Piper were polishing the ruby eyes.

"Alrighty," Leo said, effectively silencing the chatter. "Now, I found Festus in the woods, where he had a corroded command disk and a bad attitude. He was a creation of Beckendorf, who I doubt I could ever outdo," Our group got a somber mood, everyone remembering the boy I saw in my dreams.

"So, here we are, carrying on his memory by restoring his greatest creation. He's probably still making stuff in Elysium as we speak." Leo smiled a little and then said, "Alright, here goes nothing,"

Leo walked back to the head and plugged in a few wires, his hands flying across the head and neck. Finally, he put a bronze plate over the neck, taking a screwdriver from his belt and putting the hinges and latch in. He looked back to Piper and nodded. She inhaled and said in a voice full of commanding air, "Wake up, Festus, you're back home,"

The metal dragon didn't move. Leo said, "Son of Medusa! You've got to be kidding!" and kicked the neck. The ruby eyes began to glow and steam shot out of a few pipes as Leo hopped around, rubbing his foot. The dragon picked up his head and stood, looking around as if he was actually alive. "FESTUS!" Leo cried and hugged the metal hunk. The dragon groaned back in response, still looking around at us.

The tinker looked back at us and asked with an impish grin, "Who wants to take a ride?"

Everyone stepped back except Calypso. Leo grabbed her and flung her into the leather saddle he had installed. He sat behind the goddess and told Festus to take off. Calypso was screaming as loud as she could when the beast took off. Everyone laughed at the poor girl, who had fallen in love with the idiot boy.

We all walked back to the pavilion, seeing as how it was lunch. We parted ways, Nico kissing my hand as always. Complications are some kind of wonderful. I sat down with Percy, chattering about the dragon and poor Calypso.

"I'm really glad that Leo found someone. And that she got off of Ogygia," he said, sipping on his blue Pepsi.

"You need to apologize to her, you know."

Percy almost did a spit take and asked, "For what?"

"For not making sure she got off of that island. It was part of the deal you made with the gods, but you didn't check."

"But if she would've left then she wouldn't have met Leo!"

"You don't know that!"

Percy got up and went to Annabeth, asking her the same thing. Thankfully, Blondie agreed with me. Percy threw his hands up in the air and stomped over to Piper and Jason. I was glad to see that everyone agreed with me. I grinned and turned back to my own food. Soon, it was time for Capture the Flag. Tonight, it was the Ares cabin against Cabins 1, 3, and 13: Jason, Percy, Nico, and me. This was going to be good.

This was the first time we had played together so the Ares cabin had the flag. I was dressed in full armor, as was Superman and Percy. Nico was in his normal attire sitting on the back of Mrs. O'Leary. He closed his eyes and summoned the dead. About thirty assorted skeleton warriors rose from a fissure in the ground. Archers, spearmen, and swordsmen alike were in the mix. I grinned at Nico who was shouting orders to the legion. "Fight off any of the enemy, disarm them without any wounds. Don't touch the flag; leave that to the rest of our officers," he said, talking about us four.

Finally, the horn was blown and we set off into the forest, jogging at a steady pace. Jason flew up and saw that the Ares cabin had put the flag at Zeus's Fist, taking the high ground as far from the stream as possible. We split into two teams, Jason and Percy taking half of the skeletons up and around the rocks and Nico and I leading the rest in a full out charge.

When we got to the edge of the clearing, Nico summoned more skeletons, giving them the same orders. Before we attacked, a bolt of lightning struck the ground, just a few feet away from Clarisse. She was thrown back and landed on her butt, screaming curses at Jason. I smiled and summoned water from the creek, creating twelve "arms" of water around me in a circle

Nico grinned and yelled, "Charge!" The skeletons obeyed, running into the clearing with only the sound of rattling bones as a war cry. Half of the cabin surged forward and met them, the other half hanging back and waiting for the tricks. I charged in with Nico. I used the arms of water to throw anyone in my way aside. I didn't even have to use Tsunami until Clarisse ran through a hole in the circle. I was feet away from the flag when our swords locked.

Neither of us had a shield, but I had a trick up my sleeve. Connor and Travis having a crush on you did come with perks. I slapped a button on my armor and out popped an enchanted rope that tied Clarisse's arms around her back. The sword was sucked up by one of the water arms, but that didn't stop her. She barreled forward, aiming to tackle me. But I disappeared in a flash of shadow before she reached me. When the world came back into focus, Nico was holding my hand and we were in the middle of the rest of the Ares cabin. "Oops," he said.

Thankfully, my brother came through, leading his batch of skeletons into the fight. Jason was riding a horse that was made of….thunder clouds and lightning. Tempest was a sight to see, striking down anyone in the way. Finally, we reached the flag again. Nico was the first to touch it, grabbing me and jumping on the hellhound. We took off in the direction of the stream with Jason and Perc in tow. Jason was back on Tempest with Percy on behind him.

When we crossed the stream, Chiron was waiting for us. The flag turned white with the symbols of Hades, Jupiter, and Poseidon all in the circle. He blew the horn and announced that we were winners, spared from chores until the next games. I smiled up at Nico. Percy grabbed me up and put me on his shoulders before walking back to Cabin 3. I blew a kiss to Nico in goodbye.

Most of the camp was already asleep, Calypso deciding to stay in the Big House with Mr. D. Leo and his siblings were still trying, and failing, to park the_ Argo II_ in Bunker Nine. I could still hear the crashes and yells and the occasional shriek from Leo. Percy sat me down on the porch, thankfully thinking about the low doorframe. He and I walked inside silently, not really talking at all. Tyson's bunk was empty, and I began to miss him. I took out the watch he made for me, stroking the timepiece and remembering my other brother. Percy sat beside me again, still silent. I saw him open and close his mouth out of the corner of my eye. He did so again and again and again, looking like a fish out of water. Then I realized, he kinda _was_ a fish out of water.

I started to snort with laughter, probably scaring the crap out of him. He kept asking what was so funny, but I couldn't catch my breath. I laughed until my sides hurt, finally collapsing on my bed, Percy still clueless. He just shook his head, saying, "You're nuts, you know?" I nodded, going to change into my pjs before snuggling down into my covers and falling to sleep.

I didn't know why people liked to wake me up at dawn, but it seemed to happen regularly. The Friday before the dance, Calypso forcibly drug me into the Big House before going back out, dragging in Piper, Annabeth, and somehow convincing Hazel to shadow travel here through an Iris-message.

"Now that we're all here and mostly awake," the goddess began, looking pointedly at yawning Piper, "I wanted to show you the dresses I came up with!"

I didn't know if goddesses needed sleep, but obviously this one didn't. Calypso had made not only five dresses, but also gotten the accessories and shoes for each one.

Annabeth's dress was sky blue that faded into a more vibrant turquoise. The top was halter-line with a white band along the waist. The sleeves were silvery white and flowed down to her wrist. There were white pearls and white shoes to go with it.

Hazel's dress was a deep purple and went down to her knees. The straps rested on her arms, suspending the dress. A white fur stole and gloves were her accessories; Hazel was sick of jewels. The shoes were white and simple, like Annabeth's.

Piper's was a beautiful golden, like candlelight. It was slim with a slight flare-out at the legs and was also floor-length. It shimmered with each movement, and had pink shoes, gloves, and necklace to go with it. It was perfectly Piper.

Calypso's was scarlet, a color that would contrast her skin tone very nicely. Her sleeves were golden-copper. It went to her mid-thigh and flared out like flower petals. The dress also looked like a flame. Leo would love it.

And then there was mine. It was dark blue, one that had flashes of green the color of my eyes and turquoise. It was sleeveless and strapless with a heart shaped top and a slit going up to my thigh. There was a white band that went under the bodice and had six strings of pearls handing from it. There were elbow-length white gloves and strappy heels that went with it. I could already tell that I was supposed to wear my trident necklace with it. It was beautiful.

They were sitting there chattering about hair and makeup, but I was still looking at my dress. I had never owned a dress before, much less wore one. Calypso smiled when I stroked the silky fabric and asked, "Do you want to try it on?"

We all tried the dresses on. Each one was tailor made for us, thanks to our new bff goddess. I looked around and said, "I don't know how we're going to control the boys," making almost everyone blush. Annabeth, being the Wise Girl, said, "Two words: judo flip." Everyone's laughs were cut off by the ram's horn signaling breakfast. We quickly changed back into our normal clothes before running to the pavilion, me almost dropping Tsunami on the way.

I looked over to where Hazel sat down beside Nico at the Hades table. Our little romance had flourished since he asked me to the dance. Between listening to music and fighting in the arena, our relationship moved out of the complication stage to boyfriend and girlfriend stage. Nico looked over to me and winked, sending shivers down my spine. I smiled right at my oatmeal, trying to cover it up before Percy sat down.

Chiron told us that all chores and normal activities were to be canceled today in preparation for the dance since the Romans would be arriving tonight. Rachel and all of the cabin counselors had come up with the plans and were in charge of giving out orders. The theme was "We are one united," a very cheesy thing for me. Hephaestus kids were going to be building the walkway, props, and stages. Aphrodite were to beautify it. The Ares were to round up any monster and help with the heavy lifting. Athena were to arrange. Everyone else was to help in any way possible. And I was supposed to go with Nico to collect items from the demigods to represent their parents. I was so glad that Piper was a counselor.

Nico and I left immediately after breakfast to find the items. Mrs. O'Leary was sent with us to help us carry the stuff. We went to Mr. D first since he was closest and since Pollux was busy with helping. He snapped his fingers and gave us a huge wine fountain. "Don't worry, I've enchanted the wine to never run out and to keep all you insects from getting too drunk," he had reassured us. The taste of wine without consequences? Sounds good to me.

The next was Iris. Butch, her only son so far, provided us with the item, saying that she was way too busy to meet us herself. It was a rainbow projector. I didn't know how well that fit into our theme, but who cared? Hephaestus's kids told us that Festus was the gift. "I'll make sure he's here," Leo told us with a wink.

Jason gave us a golden eagle I hoped wasn't stolen from the Romans. We found a peacock couple in the Hera cabin. The Demeter cabin gave us a torch and popcorn machine. Clarisse handed over her electric spear and the cabin's mascot: a live boar. Annabeth gave us an owl and said that they would have a olive tree planted at the dance grounds. Apollo's kids sent us a golden lyre. We took a silver bow from the range and hoped for a crescent moon tonight for Artemis. Piper sent us a dove which didn't get along with Athena's owl. We didn't even have to ask the Stolls for an item. We were walking to meet them when a box from the Hermes Express appeared at our feet. Inside was George, one of his snakes from the caduceus. _Do you have any rats?_ he had repeatedly asked. The Hypnos kids gave us a pillow and poppy stem when they managed to wake up. Nike's twins, Bruce and Brenna, gave us golden laurel wreath. Janus's son, a boy named Gavin, gave us a giant silver coin. It was the size of a dinner plate and had the god himself on one side and a door on the other. Nemesis's daughter, a eight year old named Cathy, gave us a scale and told us that revenge would be sweet for Nico, whatever that meant. Tyche, the goddess of luck, gave us a ball, one that rolled around in a circle, sometimes stopping, sometimes going the other way, just like luck itself.

Hades and Poseidon were the only two left. Nico said that Mrs. O'Leary could be the Hades item, but Hazel said that wasn't enough and summoned a solid gold and diamond collar for the hellhound. For Poseidon, I swam out into the ocean and collected a few miscellaneous things. A hippocampi scale and a mini-trident were the sea-god items.

We took the last of the items back to Piper, who called over a few of the Ares campers to move them. Mrs. O'Leary had to be given a new shield to stay in place. Nico and I helped with a few other things like filling up the fountains and checking on the Roman's progress.

Finally, it was time for dinner and everything set up. The dance was going to be between the arena, cabins, and creek, a perfectly level spot. Dinner was uneventful other than the Romans arriving. Octavian and Reyna were the first to be seen coming over the hill. Frank and the others soon followed. Everyone was welcomed with open arms and no hostilities. Even Octavian seemed on good behavior other than constantly stabbing a teddy bear. Reyna gave us a trumpet for Bellona, which represented the Horn of Victory and Defeat.

We all went back to the cabins, everyone splitting up. Nico and Hazel got luck and weren't given anyone to stay with in Cabin 13. Frank, Octavian, and about a dozen other kids were assigned to stay in our cabin. Percy and I moved outside to the hammocks, giving them the less-comfortable inside beds. He went to sleep almost instantly, snoring away. I wasn't given that option. Nico snuck to Cabin 3 and laid in the hammock with me. "What are you doing? You'll have to scrub toilets for weeks if you get caught!" I scolded him.

"Ah, but I'm not inside the cabin am I?" he asked with a sly smile. Gods, he was good. I snuggled up next to him, using his chest as my pillow again. He was stroking my hair and singing in Italian softly. I couldn't tell what he was saying, so I asked him. "I'm not going to tell you," he muttered into my hair. I growled at him and poked his ribs. I tried everything: bribery, threats, offers. Nothing was working.

"You'll find out tomorrow night," he whispered to me. I growled one last time before giving up. I could wait till tomorrow, right? Turns out I could, but sleep couldn't. Before Hypnos took me under, I heard Nico say, "_Ti amero per sempre, mi cara. Finche morte ci porta, io rimarro tra le tu braccia."_


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

In the morning, Percy woke me up. Thank the gods Nico had left before he got up. Anyway, brother was asking me about Annabeth's dress and what color tie he should wear and all that. I didn't give him any hints to her dress, but I did pick out a tie. The light blue was a good, classic, matching choice. His suit was white unlike most of the others. Frank planned to wear black with a purple shirt and black bowtie. Octavian was even going to wear a black suit with a white shirt and green tie. I wondered who his date was. When I asked him, I regretted it.

"IdonthaveonebutIreallyreallyreallywantRacheltogowithmehelpmeplease!" he said, getting on his knees for emphasis.

"What?" everyone asked, peeking heads out of their bunks. The poor guy turned beat red and stammered, "I don't have a date, but I really want to go with Rachel,"

I felt kinda bad for the jerk, and helped him come up with a plan to ask her at breakfast. We spent all morning on it, even getting some help from Percy. As we were walking to breakfast, Octavian shook his head and asked, "And you're sure she isn't going with anyone else?"

"Dude," Percy said, "the poor girl is sworn to living a life of solitude unless Apollo says otherwise. I think she's single."

He sighed and straightened his shoulders. "I'm Roman, I'm the son of Apollo, and I don't back down!" he said to boost his confidence. He sauntered over to where Rachel was walking from the Big House and gave her the teddy bear. Around its neck was a string with a note on it asking if she would go with him. "You waited a little late, but yes, I'd be happy to go with you." she said. Octavian visibly relaxed after that, waving goodbye and coming back to our table.

After breakfast, Piper drug our little group of girls to the Big House to get ready. She straightened Annabeth's hair before teasing it to where it angled up before falling down along her back. Wise girl's makeup went on next. White eyeliner and grey eye shadow went on with brown mascara since black was too dark for the blond. Hazel's hair was done differently with two small braids going back into old-fashioned corkscrew curls. They were pinned back with a gold eagle. She had purple eye shadow and scarlet lipstick. Piper's hair was somehow managed into two huge curls on either side. The one on the left was slightly higher than the one on the right. Her eye-shadow was dusty rose and her eyeliner was brown as was her mascara. Calypso had on red-brow eye shadow that matched her hair which was crimped. The eyeliner and mascara was dark brown also. My makeup was simple like the others. The eye shadow matched my eyes and dress perfectly along with the black eyeliner and mascara. Scarlet lips perfected the look. My hair was left in its natural wavy state, but my bangs were pulled into a braid across the top of my head like Anna's hair for Elsa's coronation. Yes, I love Frozen; deal with it.

We looked H-O-T hot. Like, Aphrodite-would-be-proud hot. No one even noticed that we had skipped lunch. We put on our dresses yet, following Chiron's directions. I was getting hungry. Speaking of hunger, the ram's horn was blown and we left out for the pavilion and dinner. Little did we know that we wouldn't be eating there. All of us girls were holding hands, which made it very easy on Nico to transport us to Paris.

When the shadows cleared, we were outside a restaurant on the River Seine. The place had some fancy name that I didn't bother to try to pronounce with a long line of people waiting to get in. I was still holding Annabeth's hand when we saw the guys. Nico was with Percy, trying to tell the guy that they made reservations a week ago. The other guys were standing off a little ways and waved us over. Octavian and Rachel were there too, having been there for a while. Rachel looked beautiful in her mermaid style emerald green gown. She wore gold earrings and a necklace that matched her dress very well.

Frank was in his suit, and Jason in his. The son of Jupiter was wearing a white suit with a gold tie. Leo even dressed up, slicking his hair back and wearing a black suit with red shirt and gold tie.

Finally, my brother and boyfriend got so mad that they began to curse the man in Greek, but Percy began to curse him in fish also, making dolphin and whale noises. That made the host crack up before telling them to get at the back of the line. Nico and Perc stomped over to us. Percy smiled when he saw Annabeth and lifted her up by her waist, bringing her down to kiss her before pushing her back up.

Nico had a different reaction. He stood a few feet away with his mouth wide open. He was looking at me with eyes the size of plates. Other than his expression, Nico looked very smooth. His hair was still messy, but the suit and tie combated that. With a black suit and white tie, he looked very hot. Finally, he picked his jaw up off of the ground and walked over to me, taking my hand and kissing it before saying, "_Ti amero per sempre, mi cara."_

I still didn't know what that meant, but obviously Annabeth knew Italian. She put a hand on her chest and said, "Aw! That's so sweet, Nico!"

"Why were you guys cursing that poor guy?" I asked after a while.

"Well, a couple of weeks ago," Percy said, "us guys made a reservation at this fancy-smanshy restaurant. And that guy was telling us that it was for next Saturday evening, not now." Percy and Nico ranted for a while until Piper just said that she could convince the guy to let us in.

Our charmspeaking friend walked up there and spoke to the guy in French, convincing him into swapping our times around. She waved us over, saying that we were in.

The food came in five courses, going from salads to soups to appetizers to dinner to desert. Now I know why the French food is so tiny: because there so many courses. Nico and I held hands under the table while everyone spoke. When the desert menu was passed around, Leo ordered banana's foster, a dish with bananas in a brandy sauce that was lit on fire. When the waiter came out with it, Leo lit it for him and scared the daylights out of the poor guy by eating it as it was on fire. I felt bad for the man up until Piper told him that Leo was a professional fire-eater. Nico and I decided to split a slice of turtle cheesecake, my favorite.

Finally, the meal was finished and we were all comfortably full. We still had an hour before the dance, so we took a stroll along the river. Everyone held hands, even Octavian and Rachel. She seemed comfortable about it but the Roman was fire engine red. We reached a bridge after a while, one with a chain link fence and locks all around it.

"What's that for?" Leo asked when we got on the bridge. He pointed to the locks and I answered, "The locks? It's a metaphor. You have this person that you can't live without, someone that you are so madly in love with that you never want to be apart from them. So you take a padlock, put it on the fence and throw the key in the river. It's hard to find a spot now days."

So, with the symbolism explained, we ran down to the hardware store and bought six padlocks. Each of the couples found a spot, wrote their parent's symbols on it, and put the lock in place. The helmet of Hades and Poseidon's trident was on ours.

Nico and I found a place on the middle of the bridge. Once again, Nico whispered, "_Ti amero per sempre, mi cara. Finche morte ci porta, io rimarro tra le tu braccia," _to me. "Are you going to tell me what that means?" I asked with a grin.

"It means, 'I will love you forever, my darling. And until Death takes us, I will remain in your arms," he whispered in my ear. I smiled at the words, words filled with emotion and promises that no teenagers should be making. I repeated the words back to him before knocking the key out of his hand and into the river, kissing him hard. My hands tangled in his hair while his rested on my hips, pulling me against him. I felt him gasp when I bit his lip and I pulled away.

"You're such a tease," he said, pushing a stray hair out of my face. I laughed and bit my lip again. Nico kissed me again, this time just a small peck. He pulled away and held my hand, walking me towards the others who were waiting. Piper had her phone out videoing us as usual. It was time for the dance. Nico shadow traveled us back to CHB. It was nearing dark and everyone was making their way to the clearing.

The Hephaestus kids had outdone themselves, making a stone path with all the names of the demigods that had ever lived. I don't know how they did it, but they managed. I saw Persus, Odysseus, Hercules, Luke, Percy, and so many other heroes along with our own. Mine was written between Percy's and Nico's, making me grin seeing as how that was where I was meant to be. Along the way was arches wrapped with Christmas lights. We finally got to the clearing where the party was in full swing. Some Apollo kids were DJ-ing while others were taking pictures. Chiron and Mr. D were on border patrol, so we didn't have any chaperones other than the gods who I'm sure were watching us. Nico and I had our picture made before hitting the dance floor. Leo and I had to teach everyone in our group Gangam style, wop, wobble, and cat-daddy. I think I drank some wine, but its kinda fuzzy. I do remember Nico and I slow dancing a lot and Jason dancing Piper in the air. Annabeth and Percy were constantly kissing after the first drink, and Leo was still trying to teach Calypso to dance. I saw Travis and Reyna dancing together a few times. I thought they were super cute together and gave the Hermes kid a thumbs up.

Soon, it was time for the last slow dance I grabbed Nico's hand and pulled him out with me.

_Nico POV_

I wasn't supposed to be here, dancing with a girl under the stars. I wasn't supposed to kiss her, and I sure wasn't supposed to feel like this. But it felt so right. She was so much like Percy, but without his faults. Gods, I loved her. More than she would ever know.

I knew Maria had something planned for us after the dance, but it didn't know just what it was. She had drank a little wine, making her giggly and lighthearted. I didn't trust this version of her, but she caught my attention when she told me she wanted to go home. "Where's home?" I asked, picking her up bridal style. She giggled and told me where to go. I wasn't used to shadow traveling on someone else's directions, but if it made _mi amour_ happy, I would do it.

So, I took us to her little cabin in Arkansas. I had never been here before. The cabin was small and the decorations homey. All the plants looked like they needed a good watering. Maria must've thought so too. She summoned water from the lake and gave each one a healthy drink. She pushed me out for a little while, saying that she had to change. I took the time to go back to Cabin 13 and get changed myself. I usually slept in my boxers and a t-shirt, but with Maria, I decided to go with some shorts too.

I came back to find her curled up on her bed reading _The Fault in our Stars_ for probably the thousandth time. I sat her in my lap, but she didn't seem to notice. She continued to read. After a while, I began to read over her shoulder. Man, Augustus had some moves. Soon, we reached the saddest part, and I was in disbelief.

"Maria, what does he mean by 'I lit up like a Christmas tree'?" I asked. She was sobbing silently without a word. We kept reading until the very end. It was two a.m. when we finished, and I held her as she cried. Finally she stopped sobbing.

"Hey," I said, tilting her face up, "Maybe forever will be our always,"

She sniffled and asked, "Forever?"

"Forever," I replied before kissing her goodnight and falling asleep.

I woke up a few hours later to the Minotaur crashing through the door. He was reformed and ticked off. I jumped out of the bed and reached for my sword…..which I left at camp! Thankfully, Maria had Tsunami on the bedside table. She swung it in a wide arch before charging the beast. It would've been a perfect action picture…if she hadn't of been in her Hello Kitty pajamas.

The beast swung his head down low, giving her the opening to jump on his head. She did, driving the sword through its open mouth and out the back of his skull. Before turning to dust, the Minotaur swung his head, throwing Maria right on top of his horn. She gasped as it plunged into her side. The beast turned to dust and my darling fell to the floor.

"MARIA!" I yelled, running to her side. She held a hand over her fatal wound, trying to stop the blood from gushing out. I fell to my knees beside her, watching the blood flow out onto the floor. I picked her up gently as possible and shadow traveled to Camp Half-Blood. I didn't bother to take her to Chiron because moving her might make it worse. I just started to scream for help.

Percy came out first and yelled for someone to get Amy. Maria's breathing was getting shallower and more unstable. Percy held her hand, sitting on her other side, still screaming for a healer. I looked in Maria's eyes and watched as she looked from me to Percy. She hadn't said a word the whole time. Maria looked at Percy and said, "I'm so sorry. Take care of Annabeth…and Tyson,"

Then she turned those beautiful eyes to me. A single tear slipped out of her left eye. She gasped and laid a hand on my cheek. "I love you, Nico. And I'm sorry I couldn't give you forever," she said. I couldn't say anything back, still crushed under the weight of her words. Percy was still screaming for help, tears rolling down his face.

Finally, someone heard and brought Amy out. Chiron raced up with Mr. D. Calypso, Annabeth, and the rest of our group came out. But by then it was too late. Maria smiled one last time, holding her hand on my face until her eyes glassed over. Her hand fell from my cheek. Piper put a hand over her mouth, trying to smother her sobs. Annabeth fell down beside Percy, trying to hug him. Percy had his knees pulled up to his chest, pushing her away again and again until he finally broke down, openly sobbing {Percy: _I had just lost my sister, my only family other than Tyson. I lost a friend, a companion, and the only demigod I was related to. It was like watching Annabeth die. I had an empty hole in my heart, one that couldn't ever be filled.} _Hazel had her head pressed against Frank's chest, but you could see her shoulder's shaking.

And me? I'd like to say that I did cry, but I didn't. I just kept on looking at her, waiting for her to blink and smile and say that she was just messing with us. Waiting for her to rub my cheek again. Waiting for her to bite her lip. Waiting for her to make a book reference that I didn't understand. Waiting for her to kiss me. Waiting.

After a few seconds, I realized that she wasn't going to do any of those things. I shook her shoulders gently. I pressed my head to her chest like she had done to me so many times. But I didn't find the rhythm she did. The silence was deafening.

I was later told that I sat there, not making a sound. But on the inside, I was screaming. I was screaming her name over and over again. I was trying to remember everything she had ever said to me. I was trying to remember how her hair shined in the sun. How her teeth contrasted her tan skin. How she always chewed on her lip. How she smiled at me. And I did. They said that I didn't move, not when Chiron took her away, not when it started to rain, not when they tried to get me to eat. I just stared at the ground where she once laid.

I recall Hazel wrapping a blanket around me after it rained. I remember Percy coming to talk to me, asking what happened and cursing me when I wouldn't respond. I remember Jason sitting beside me without a word.

I remember Leo coming to me, sitting down and saying, "Silence doesn't cover the brokenness, but humor does. That's the best way to hide a broken heart. We're all broken, to some extent, but its up to us to fix it, not anyone else. And I'm sorry that I called you creepy. You're a really great guy, and I'm proud to say that you're my friend."

I remember Piper bringing me things that should've caught my attention, trying to charmspeak me without success; I wasn't listening to her. I remember a few of the Aphrodite girls sobbing and checking on a camera they set up when Maria and I first arrived. I remember Poseidon himself coming over to me and saying, "She really loved you, you know,"

I didn't bother to move, not sleeping, not eating, and barely breathing for twenty-four hours. I had no reason to.

The person who broke me from my trance was dead. Bianca's spirit came to me, bending down so she could look at my face. "Nico," she whispered. I finally looked away from the ground and up into the ghost face of my sister. It was in the middle of the night, the full moon shining brightly.

"Nico, you have to get up." she said, pulling at my hands. I jerked them away, not wanting to be comforted. "Nico, what would Maria say is she saw you like this?"

I glared at her, saying, "Don't act like you knew her," My voice sounded like gravel from the silence and lack of water.

"I didn't know her, but you did. And you know she wouldn't want you to sit here like this," Bianca said. "She would want you to live, not starve yourself. You need to talk to the others. They're suffering, too. Not like you are," she added quickly, "but they are hurting also. Percy lost his only sister. He knows how it felt when you lost me now."

And then I remembered the pain. The pain when Percy told me that Bianca had died. The pain of loosing my only sister, the only attachment I had to my past. I nodded to her spirit, making her smile. Bianca kissed my cheek in goodbye before fading,

I tried to get up, but my legs gave away from under me. I finally got up, walking to Cabin 3. Percy answered when I knocked, surprised in seeing that I had gotten up. His eyes were swollen; he had been crying. "Can I come in?" I asked. Percy nodded and opened the door wider. I saw that his bed was untouched, but her's was unmade. "I've been sleeping in it," Percy confessed.

"I would've done the same thing,"

"I'm sorry, man,"

"Me too. It's all my fault," I said before breaking down for the first time. Percy and I sat on her bed, clutching at her sheets and crying until we fell asleep.

I ate like I hadn't in days the next morning, which was true. Percy said that they were going to have her funeral in two days. I had two, two days to get her back. I told Percy my plan. My idiotic, half-thought plan. And he thought it was great. "I'll come with you," he said. "No, man," I replied, "I've gotta do this alone." We argued for a while, but I won out. "My dad hates you, and that won't make him any happier. Plus, you've gotta stay here and convince Amy to heal her." That ended our argument.

"Nico, I've never seen you look this broken," Percy told me as I began to walk out, "I mean, even after Tartarus and the bronze jar, you didn't take it this bad. And I can't help but asking why." I sighed and said, "Because I can forget about Tartarus, but I can't forget about her," before closing the door.

I had one thing on my mind: Hazel. I found her at the arena, talking to Piper. After thanking her for the breakfast, I told them my hairbrained plan. "I think it's a good idea, but don't get your hopes up. You know how Dad is," I kissed her goodbye and walked into the shadows, into the Underworld. The darkness felt like home. I stayed here a lot before Maria. I walked past the EZ death line and patted Cerebus's heads. I didn't pay attention to the rest of hell, because I had a goal.

Dad was in his palace as usual, this time looking longingly at Persephone's throne. It was still another month before she would come back. I walked right in without even knocking. "Nico," Hades greeted. He was wearing that robe that had suffering souls on it. I didn't even shudder when I looked in his eyes and asked, "Where is she?"

He sighed, and said, "You're going to have to be a little more specific." Then I did the stupid thing of grabbing him by the robes and pulling him down to face me. "Where. Is. Maria?" I asked deliberately. He uncurled my fingers with a raised eyebrow. "Poseidon's girl? She's waiting for judgment." he said as if it was obvious.

"I'm taking her back," I told him. Hades shrugged as if he didn't care. "Go ahead, Hercules took his girlfriend too"

"There's always a catch," I said, glaring at my father again. "Well, there is one small thing," Dad said, slicking back his hair again. "What?" I spat at him.

"I need you to do away with some nasty spirits. Just the thing that Zeus would be up my butt about,"

"That's it? Slay a few ghosts and I get Maria?"

"Now a few, I mean around a hundred. They're constantly ruining the line and Cerebus can't control them all. I need you to run your sword through them and send them to the back. Once you do that, you can get Maria. No catches, no tricks. Because I know Bianca put you up to this."

I felt like it was an ok deal, so I accepted. If Bianca did whisper in his ear, I wasn't going to get double-crossed. Hades stuck out his hand, which I shook. I then grab my sword off my hip and walk out to see Cerebus. "Show them to me, buddy," I whispered into his sixth ear. He struck the hound dog "point" pose at a band of ghosts wearing neon green shirts. That was all I needed. I ran towards them, my sword trailing behind me. I ran my sword through the first three before the rest of them realized what was happening. Then all hell broke loose.

They attacked me, swing their knives and arms at me, sometimes hitting me, sometimes missing. I caught a few cuts on my face, but my sword vaporized them all. After about half way through, I had to swap arms. The left one was getting tired and my right was still fresh. I asked the god of war for strength and felt my energy boost back up. There was a slight red glow around me, and I faintly wondered if it was the blessing of Ares. I didn't take time to think about it, cutting and slicing through the dead. Finally, the last green dude was standing in front of me. They couldn't talk, thank the gods, because if they could, I wouldn't have been able to do this. I ran the sword through the last ghost, trying to turn away as I saw the horror erupt on its face. Cerebus wagged his tails and barked at me, signaling that that was all of the noisy spirits. I petted him again before turning my eyes up to the palace.

I kicked the doors open again, this time annoying Dad. "Well, well, you finished?" he asked, picking the seeds out of a pomegranate. "Yes, now its time for you to fulfill your end of the bargain." I spat back. Gods, his indifference was making me mad. Didn't he care about my sanity and to a lesser extent, my happiness?

Hades snapped his fingers and Maria's spirit appeared. She looked asleep, but then again, so did most of the dead. I picked her up and turned to walk out. "Nico, wait," Dad said. I sighed and turned back around, asking him, "What do you want now?"

"I just wanted to say that…it's just that….I'm proud of you, ok?" he stammered, taking me completely by surprise. "What?"

"I said that I'm proud of you. Because of you, my children aren't looked down on any more. Your heroism shows that not all of my kids are evil or nuts. So, thanks," he said before turning back to his pomegranate. I stood there like an idiot, staring at him. I couldn't believe what he just said. It went from "I'd prefer Bianca" to "I'm proud of you."

He looked back at me with those black eyes and said, "Well? Don't you have a girl to save?" before grinning at me. I smiled back before running out of the palace and shadow traveling to CHB.

The infirmary was empty, minus Percy who sat with Maria's body, holding her pale hand. She was wearing blue jean shorts and a CHB shirt, just as usual. He saw me holding the spirit and dropped it. "Gods, Nico, you look like the dead!" I smiled at the irony. But I had a job to do.

"Is her body healed?" I asked Percy.

"Yep, I poured on the nectar and ambrosia. Amy said that its back to normal. So how do we do this?"

I really didn't know, so I went for just laying her spirit back in her body and praying to everyone in Olympus for this to work. Percy and I held our breath….and she took hers.

_Maria POV_

I drew in a shuttering gap for air. What happened? Why was I in the infirmary? Why were Nico and Percy crying and holding each other? And then the memories hit me. The Minotaur…the horn…..the dying…and then Nico, slicing through the ghosts and the red glow around him. The blessing of Ares on someone other than his children? It's unheard of.

I reached out a hand and put it on Nico's knee, smiling when he looked at me. Percy was still sobbing into Nico's shoulder. "Percy, you aren't allowed to snuggle with my boyfriend," I said, Then I was suffocated and smooshed between the two people I loved most in the world. My brother's salty smell clashed with Nico's dark smell, but it made me feel safe.

"So, what's been going on? And why was Nico glowing red in the Underworld?" I asked once I could breathe again. Apparently, after my episode, Nico became a mute until Bianca (well, her spirit) saved him. I was really touched when Percy told me about when Nico said that the reason this killed him more than Tartarus was that he could "forget Tartarus," but he couldn't forget me.

I was suffocated again and again by the rest of the seven along with Calypso, the Stolls, Reyna, Rachel, and even a small hug from Octavian. Piper was crying again and Annabeth was still trying to keep from choking Percy for not telling her sooner. As to why Nico was glowing red in the Underworld, we all speculate that it was the blessing of Ares. But why would he give it to Nico? Piper had the answer.

"It's obvious!" she had said, "Mom is his girlfriend. Mom ships you two so much that she convinced Ares to give Nico his blessing in fighting for you. Come on, Annabeth, you couldn't have thought about that?" Annabeth muttered something about not being good with love, making Percy disagree and the whole room to choose sides.

Eventually, we left the infirmary, effectively interrupting dinner and scaring Grover enough to make him jump into Juniper's arms. Piper had rushed me through dinner, saying that she had to look at "the film" with me.

She had shortened the recording down to when Nico held me as I died and the whole ten minutes of that. I lost my composure when I saw Percy crying and pushing Annabeth away. I must've meant a lot to him for him to not want her. Nico was in shock, obviously, but everyone else was bawling. Chiron moved my body, and Nico just sat there, staying until you could see Bianca's spirit talking to him. Then he and Percy were filmed sitting on my bed and crying. Gods, I didn't know how much I meant to them.

I kissed Percy on the cheek when we left the cabin, tears still streaming down my face. "I love you, Perc," I said with a smile. He hugged me back, smiling when Annabeth joined in. Nico was nowhere to be found, but I had my guesses on where the boy was. Cabin 13 was black as night and very, very unique. Gemstones were pressed into the obsidian walls, making the place twinkle like the night sky. Gold and silver and other precious metals made the beds while the black and purple sheets shimmered like shadows.

Nico sat beside the bed I presumed was his. He was burning a few plates of food from dinner into the altar, whispering thanks to Ares, Aphrodite, and Hades. When he was done, he didn't bother to turn around, just backpedaling until he sat on his bed. I came up behind him, putting my arms around his waist. It was soaked. "Nico? Why are you wet?" I asked. He didn't make any noise, just sitting there. "Nico?"

I began to get worried and walked around to the other side. It wasn't water that was staining his shirt. It was blood. "Oh, my gods, Nico you're hurt."

"I didn't notice till now," he said, gasping in pain. The blessing must've worn off and Nico was in pain. I started to help him walk to the infirmary, one of his arms over my shoulders. Thank the gods that Hazel walked in right as Nico began to collapse. "NICO!" she screamed, putting the other arm on hers.

We practically had to drag him there. He was moaning in pain with each step. Thank you Zeus for having a son. Jason used the wind to pick him up and take him there when he found us. Nico was still pouring blood from gods know where. I was still in shock. I was going into the infirmary with Jason, but Amy stopped me. "You just got back from the dead, girl. You don't need to see this."

I sat outside on the ground. Percy came later, asking me what happened. "They won't let me in," I replied, still staring at the wooden doors. Annabeth sat with me, rubbing my back and saying that everything will be alright. I was starting to believe her when I heard Nico scream.

The sound was way worse than anything I had ever heard. The boy I loved, screaming in pain. I bit my lip hard enough to completely rip through the soft flesh and let the blood pour out. An ugly sob racked through my body and burst through my mouth. Annabeth clutched my body, pressing me into her own. I didn't want her comfort, I wanted Nico's. I pushed away, just like Percy did.

I collapsed onto the deck and pressed my face into the wood. Another scream ripped through the air, and my own nearly joined it. I knew the pain that came with dying, and it wasn't anything like he was going through. It was torture, something way worse than dying. Gods it was killing me. I pressed my hands over my ears and sobbed loudly, trying to drown out the sound of the pain.

Annabeth sat beside me, not saying a word, not touching me, just sitting. Finally, Jason came out, kicking my side and tripping over me, face planting in the dirt. He swore loudly in Latin. "Gods, I'm sorry, Maria!" he said, still rubbing the dirt off of his face. I didn't look up completely, glancing at the boy before hiding my face in my hand.

"Do you want to know how he's doing?" Jason asked, putting an arm around me. I nodded and looked up, tears still pouring down my face.

"Well, apparently, the spirit's blades were poisoned, so he's in a lot of pain. Amy doesn't know if he's gonna make it. But Nico's pulled through a lot worse than this," he said, not making me feel any better. I looked up in his blue eyes, and searched for any signs of lying. His eyes showed truth. And that killed me.

"Can I see him?" I asked in a wavering voice. Jason inhaled through his teeth before saying that he was unconscious right now. "That's probably a good thing," I joked, "I don't thing I could see him awake right now," The laugh turned into a retching sob. I finally was able to pick myself up with the help of Annabeth. Jason opened the doors, and we walked to the end of the hall.

Nico was on his back on a cot, enflamed skin stretching across his chest and in various areas across his upper body. I fell to my knees, looking at my Nico. He was in so much pain, even in his sleep. It killed me, but at least he wasn't screaming. I covered my mouth to keep from screaming at him to wake up. Jason and Annabeth left me alone after a few minutes. I was holding his hand, tracing the words "I love you" onto the top of his hand over and over and over again.

I heard him moan in his sleep and jolted up, searching for any sign of him waking, Those eyelids began to flutter and his dark eyes opened, still bleary and full of pain. "Nico," I breathed. He showed no sign of recognition, his eyes flicking around. Then the pain hit him again and he began to groan and moan in his delirious state. I began to cry again. "Nico, Nico you can let go," I told him, the words tumbling out of my mouth before I could stop them. "Just let go. I'll be okay. Let go, Nico." I cried with the words still spilling from the most selfless place in my soul.

I didn't know if the words registered in his subconscious mind, but something in him gave up. Nico looked at me one last time with clear eyes, smiling a crooked smile that made something inside of me crack. And then the fight and fire in those eyes of his faded and he closed them. I sat there for a minute, and I didn't cry; numbness soon overtook me. I wouldn't cry, knowing that he sacrificed himself for me. I wouldn't cry, I would honor him by going on, moving on without morning just like he would want me to.

I don't know how long it was before Jason and Annabeth came in. I do remember Annabeth patting my back and telling me that we had to go. She was right, I did have to go. I went to the Poseidon cabin and packed my smallest bag, still numb and unfeeling. I didn't know where I was going, but I did know that I had to get out of there.

Grabbing the wristlet with infinite space, I tossed in my clothes, a winter coat for when it got cold, the watch Tyson made for me, one of Percy's shirts, and twenty drachmas from the fountain. My bow and arrows were in the corner closest to my bed. I grabbed those and slung them over my back. I also wrote Percy a note, saying that I was alright, but that I had to leave for a while. I told him that I was armed, but I was leaving Tsunami. A separate note went to Tyson, telling him that I loved him and that I would miss him while I was on vacation. I walked out of Cabin 3, a place I had begun to call home.

In the armory, Piper was there, gently prodding me with questions. I ignored her, grabbing a silver sword and matching shield along with the knife that went with the two. I slipped the sword and knife in my bag, grabbing a white sword sheath and slipping the silver weapon in. I walked to the Big House, searching for Rachel. She was in there, painting her toes a rainbow of colors.

"Hey, Rachel," I greeted. She looked up and smiled, glancing at my bags and raising an eyebrow. "I'm leaving for a while, going back to my cabin in Arkansas. I can't stay here with all these memories,"

Rachel turned back to me, her eyes growing wider and wider. "Nico?" she asked hesitantly. I shook my head and bit my lip. "Oh, Marie," she tried, using the nickname she came up for me. I shook my head again, willing the tears back.

"Don't worry, I'll be alright. I want to find the Hunt and join up," I told her. Rachel opened her mouth to say something, but she dropped her nail polish and her eyes glowed green. The voice she spoke with was not her own.

_ "The forbidden act has come to rise,_

_ The single soul shall unite the Five,_

_ And with the final breath she takes,_

_ Comes a choice at hand only she can make._

_ The lonely huntress, the fallen soul,_

_ The unfinished one, her, and the raked of coals, _

_ Shall become the children of the Five,_

_ And become the champions, for the time is nigh."_

And then she blinked and it was over. I scribbled down what she said and showed it to her. She began to pace, muttering about the five. I made myself another copy and walked out, running into Chiron. "And where are you going?" Chiron asked. I fibbed and said to find him.

He followed me into the Big House where Rachel was alternating between cleaning her mess and muttering about stupid Oracles and bad timing. "We have to call a meeting," Chiron said, telling a few roaming satyrs to gather the counselors. In a few minutes, Katie Gardener, the Stolls, Clarisse, Annabeth, Jason, Piper, Percy, Will Solace, Leo, Pollux, Butch, Clovis, Bruce (the boy of Nike's set of twins), Cathy (Daughter of Nemesis, Layla (daughter of Hebe), and Lou Elle (Daughter of Hecate) walked into the Big House.

Chiron called the meeting to order, and I began to get very uncomfortable. Everyone was looking at me like I was a wounded dog. I stood tall and kept an indifferent look on my face. I sat beside Rachel who was still fuming over her pedicure being ruined. Chiron silenced the campers with a stomp of his foot. Percy looked at me, trying to get my attention. I ignored him and waited for something to happen. Rachel took a deep breath, still ticked.

"Ok, so, I just spouted a new prophecy in front of Maria," she said, causing all kinds of uproar, Percy yelling the loudest. "SILENCE!" Chiron yelled. Everyone complied. Rachel recited the prophecy again, this time not being possessed by the Oracle.

"What does this mean to you?" Chiron asked. Cathy stood first and said that we needed to figure out what the Five was first. Annabeth answered the question by saying, "It's obvious. That's the rivers of Tartarus."

That threw the whole thing into chaos again. Then I began to tune them out. They were talking about my fate, the fate of all of us. And no one even spoke about Nico. I narrowed my eyes and looked around the table. Then I got an idea. I got up and walked right out of there, no one even noticing that I had. I heard Clarisse yelling at Will and Lou Elle yelling at Clovis who had probably fallen asleep again.

With all of my gear, I walked straight out of the camp and to Half-Blood hill. I didn't care where I went, as long as it was away from here. Peleus was there, snoozing under Thalia's pine and guarding the Golden Fleece. I patted his head as I went by, crossing the border.

Not once looking back


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

It had been a week.

Seven days,

One hundred sixty-eight hours,

Ten thousand eighty-minutes,

Over six hundred thousand seconds and counting.

Since I had left my home,

My brother,

My friends.

Since he had left me.

I had just left a mythology museum in Topeka. I was listening to a lecture on the five rivers of Tartarus. I recalled it all.

_ "Think of pain, deep unbearable pain. Pain that kills, that strips away your very soul. That's the Styx. _

_ "Now think of sorrow. The absence of love, the lack of emotion. Emptiness. Emptiness that doesn't show on the outside, but the inside, you are broken. That is the Acheron._

_ "Now think of sorrow. Deep, everlasting sorrow. Being powerless, feeling useless. Sorrow that lasts forever, that follows you into the afterlife. That it the Cocytus._

_ "Think of fire. Deadly, beautiful, like the Sirens of the Mediterranean. Fire can kill, but it can also bring happiness. It burns away the sorrow and pain. That is the Phlegethon._

_ "Think of oblivion, lastly. Think of forgetting everything you've ever known. The absence of nothing. Pure oblivion. Nothing. Nothing to live for, and nothing to fight for. That is the Lethe," _

I remembered every word, everything I could recall. It was the prophecy. The one that I've been running from. But I can't run from fate. So, why not run to it?


	5. Chapter 5

It was twilight, the time when the sun and moon battled for the last rays. I was walking through a forest in Missouri, not really caring where I went.

I looked back on the times I spent with him. I remembered the little things, the things most people would forget. The way he tilted his head, the way his arms always seemed to find their way around me, the way his cold hands always seemed to warm mine. The way his hair felt when it was wrapped around my fingers, The way he always whispered to me in Italian. The thing was, I began to understand what he meant when he lost me. It was a lot easier on a person when they couldn't remember the ones they lost. It was so hard to look back and see all the things I would miss, all the things that he would never do for me. I had thought of our future, on one of the nights spent in the hammock. I had thought about us getting married and having children. I wish that I hadn't. I wish that I would've just lived in the moment instead of challenging fate for a happy ending.

I didn't know how I would move on. I didn't think I could. I felt like Hazel Grace, thankful for the little infinity he gave me, but at the same time, cursing fate and asking, begging for more.

I remembered the words I said to him as I died. "I'm sorry I couldn't give you forever." The statement echoed around in my head, growing louder and louder until I couldn't take it. I turned around for the first time since leaving Camp Half-Blood. The echoes stopped, and I watched the dawn break. And I felt myself do the same.

* * *

**Author's note: **

**This is the last chapter in the book, but don't worry! The sequel will be up soon. I felt like pulling an Uncle Rick and making you guys wait for a while. You have to admit that I'm pretty consistent on updating. Thanks for all the views and...wow! 7 reviews?! Its bad when I'm excited over 7 reviews. Haha, anyways. **

**Blue cookies for everyone who reviews! Thanks!**


	6. Sequel Information

Part two is now out! "Without End", the sequel to "Death's Love", is still in progress but it is indeed out! Thank you guys for reading and reviewing! I do find it imperative for you, the reader, to participate in the choosing mentioned in Chapter 3. But, I get ahead of myself. Enjoy the read!

-MaKayla


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